milkyspit
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hi folks! Just by dumb luck, I got a promotional email from Zbattery.com (I've bought from them in the past, though more recently most of my battery business goes to Kevin at Battery Station, a CPF supporter). Anyway, this particular email also included what I thought was a nice little article about various cell chemistries, both single-use and rechargeable. My intent here isn't to plagiarize, but I'm not sure if this article appears anywhere that I can link to it. So what I'll do is provide a link to Zbattery.com's home page just to be fair, followed by a cut-and-paste of the article text...
You can find Zbattery.com over here.
Here's the article... enjoy! It's a nice overview, and would be particularly helpful for battery newbies, IMHO.
(snip)
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Chemistry 101 - The Basics of Battery Chemistry
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There's lots of chemistries out there when it comes to batteries...so which one's are which and what's so unique about them?
Non-Rechargeable Chemistries:
*Alkaline* - High energy density, medium weight in comparison to others, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, a wide range of prices but 'cheap' compared to rechargeables.
*Heavy Duty / General Purpose* - Don't be fooled by the sales at your local Drug Store. These are usually Heavy Duty batteries. Low energy density, light weight, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, about 1/4 - 1/2 the life of an alklaine, very cheap.
*Lithium* - The non-rechargeable type. Very high energy density, 10 year shelf life, ideal for high drain devices because of its quick recovery, safely disposable in the garbage, fairly expensive compared to alkalines. Nearly twice the life of an alkaline in most applications, best in cold weather.
*Oxy Nickle* - A pretty unknown chemistry. High energy density, medium weight, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, better than alkaline in high drain devices, expensive compared to other chemistries.
*Silver Oxide* - Very high energy density, medium weight, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, a little more expensive than alkaline, longer lasting than alkaline.
Rechargeable Chemistries:
*Li-Ion* - Very high energy density, light weight, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, fairly expensive, self discharges slower than NiMH, about 300-500 recharges.
*Li-Polymer* - Very high energy density, very light weight, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, a little expensive, self discharges slower than NiMH, about 300-500 recharges.
*NiMH* - High energy density (about the same as Li-Ion), heavier than Li-ion and about the same as alkaline, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, more expensive than NiCad, self-discharges on shelf about 1%/day, about 500 recharges.
*NiCad* - Medium energy density, lighter than alkaline, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, less expensive than NiMH, self-discharges on shelf about 1%/day, about 1000 recharges.
*Sealed Lead / Gel Cell* - Low energy density, heavy, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 3-4 year shelf life, self discharges more than 1% per day, 200-500 charges depending on type.
*Wet Acid (auto)* - Low energy density, heavy, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 3-4 year shelf life, self discharges slower than sealed lead acid batteries.
*For rechargeable batteries the shelf life specified takes into account that the batteries are recharged every 3 months or so to keep from self-discharging below the point that they will not take a charge any longer. Please note that temperature and humidity affects the self-discharge rate. The higher the temperature and the higher the humidity the faster the discharge rate will be. The ideal storage temperature for batteries is right above freezing (around 0 degrees C).
(snip)
You can find Zbattery.com over here.
Here's the article... enjoy! It's a nice overview, and would be particularly helpful for battery newbies, IMHO.
(snip)
=====================================
Chemistry 101 - The Basics of Battery Chemistry
=====================================
There's lots of chemistries out there when it comes to batteries...so which one's are which and what's so unique about them?
Non-Rechargeable Chemistries:
*Alkaline* - High energy density, medium weight in comparison to others, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, a wide range of prices but 'cheap' compared to rechargeables.
*Heavy Duty / General Purpose* - Don't be fooled by the sales at your local Drug Store. These are usually Heavy Duty batteries. Low energy density, light weight, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, about 1/4 - 1/2 the life of an alklaine, very cheap.
*Lithium* - The non-rechargeable type. Very high energy density, 10 year shelf life, ideal for high drain devices because of its quick recovery, safely disposable in the garbage, fairly expensive compared to alkalines. Nearly twice the life of an alkaline in most applications, best in cold weather.
*Oxy Nickle* - A pretty unknown chemistry. High energy density, medium weight, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, better than alkaline in high drain devices, expensive compared to other chemistries.
*Silver Oxide* - Very high energy density, medium weight, safely disposable in the garbage, 5-7 year shelf life, a little more expensive than alkaline, longer lasting than alkaline.
Rechargeable Chemistries:
*Li-Ion* - Very high energy density, light weight, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, fairly expensive, self discharges slower than NiMH, about 300-500 recharges.
*Li-Polymer* - Very high energy density, very light weight, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, a little expensive, self discharges slower than NiMH, about 300-500 recharges.
*NiMH* - High energy density (about the same as Li-Ion), heavier than Li-ion and about the same as alkaline, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, more expensive than NiCad, self-discharges on shelf about 1%/day, about 500 recharges.
*NiCad* - Medium energy density, lighter than alkaline, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 4-5 year shelf life, less expensive than NiMH, self-discharges on shelf about 1%/day, about 1000 recharges.
*Sealed Lead / Gel Cell* - Low energy density, heavy, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 3-4 year shelf life, self discharges more than 1% per day, 200-500 charges depending on type.
*Wet Acid (auto)* - Low energy density, heavy, environmentally hazardous (recycle), 3-4 year shelf life, self discharges slower than sealed lead acid batteries.
*For rechargeable batteries the shelf life specified takes into account that the batteries are recharged every 3 months or so to keep from self-discharging below the point that they will not take a charge any longer. Please note that temperature and humidity affects the self-discharge rate. The higher the temperature and the higher the humidity the faster the discharge rate will be. The ideal storage temperature for batteries is right above freezing (around 0 degrees C).
(snip)
